Calling All Angels
by Krystina
Summary: After Sabrina has a stroke, her and Kelly's lives begin to change, as they learn to cope with getting old and making changes in their lives.
1. The Early Morning Phone Call

Disclaimer – I do not take credit for the characters Kelly, Kris, Jill and Sabrina. These characters are the creation of Aaron Spelling Productions. I have created all other characters that appear in the story.  
  
Sabrina and Kelly had been best friends for the majority of their adult lives, best friends that were more like sisters. They had kept in touch through phone calls and letters at first, later venturing into emails, but the important thing was that they had never lost touch. Kelly had been the maid of honor at Sabrina's wedding, and the god mother of Sabrina's only son. Sabrina had been Kelly's pillar of strength, the voice of reason when her insecurities had become too much, and she had been the maid of honor at Kelly's wedding, when she was finally ready to get married. Eventually it worked out so that they only lived a half hour away from each other, so they could be there for each other no matter what time of day it was, or what they were doing. That was why, when the phone woke Kelly up at 2 o'clock in the morning, and Sabrina's name was on the caller ID, Kelly knew something was wrong.  
  
"Hello" Kelly managed to say as she forced her eyes to open.  
  
"Kelly, it's Jack." Jack was Sabrina's husband, and usually he was very blunt with what he had to say, especially when it came to the reason for why he was calling. His sudden silence was only further proof that something was wrong.  
  
"Jack, it's 2 o'clock in the morning. What's wrong?"  
  
"It's Bri. I think she had a stroke. Nobody will tell me though." Kelly could tell through the trembling of his voice that he was scared, an emotion that she never would have associated with Jack.  
  
"What! When?" Kelly asked. Suddenly, Kelly was wide awake, and desperate for any details that he could give her.  
  
"She'd had a headache for the past couple of days, but she told me not to worry about it. Then tonight she woke me up around midnight and told me that she wasn't feeling right. I told her to take something, but when she got up and tried to walk to the medicine cabinet, she collapsed."  
  
"Where is she now?"  
  
"The county hospital. I've been here for nearly an hour and a half though and I still haven't heard anything. I felt like I was going crazy, I needed to talk to someone, so I called you."  
  
"Alright. I'm on my way over there now. If you hear anything, call me on my cell phone, alright." Kelly told him as she got out of bed. After agreeing that he would, Kelly hung up the phone and put the first clothes that she could find on, as she tried to hurry out.  
  
"Kel., what's wrong? Who was on the phone" Kelly's husband Christopher asked as she was looking for her other shoe.  
  
"Jack. They just took Sabrina to the hospital; they think she had a stroke. I'm going to go over there."  
  
"You want me to come?" Christopher asked as he sat up in bed.  
  
"No, stay here, you have to go to work early tomorrow. I'll call you when I have some news." Kelly said before giving him a quick kiss and rushing out the door.  
  
Kelly had never considered the drive from her house to Sabrina's to be a long one, until that night. Even while ignoring the speed limit, her car seemed to be unable of going fast enough, the road getting longer and longer with no end in sight. The entire way, all Kelly could think about were the words that Jack had said to her. Not once before that night had Kelly considered it possible for either of them to have a stroke, or a heart attack, or any other medical ailment usually associated with the elderly. They had never considered themselves old, and therefore the possibility, at least in there minds, was never there.  
  
When Kelly finally arrived at the hospital, she parked her car in the first spot that she could find, before racing into the building. Despite the fact that it felt like she had been in her car for hours, her phone had not rung once, and she assumed that to mean that there was no news. With no update, and no idea as to where to go, Kelly made her way to the emergency room, where she was directed to the waiting area. Not seeing Jack anywhere, her heart began to beat faster as she felt the blood rush up to her head. She needed to know what was going on, and soon, or else she too would end up having a stroke.  
  
After scanning the small room for a second time, Kelly went back over to the nurse's desk where she once again tried to get some information as to where Sabrina was. No matter how hard she pleaded, however, the nurse still diverted her to the waiting area until they could find something out. Not having any strength left to argue with, Kelly walked over to the dirty orange chairs, and tried not to focus on their color as she sat down with the rest of the people forced to wait. After realizing that her heart wasn't going to slow down any without finding something out, she decided to try to calm her nerves by observing the five or six other people sitting in the small section of chairs, and wondered what their reasons for being there so early were. Only one or two of them looked to be in need of medical attention, so she assumed that the rest were waiting for the morning visiting hours to start or for some sort of news, just as she was.  
  
After 10 or so minutes of waiting, a nurse finally called her name and offered to take her up to Sabrina's room. The only news she had, however, was what Kelly already knew, which drove Kelly crazy. All she wanted to know was whether or not Sabrina would be ok, yet so far, no one seemed to be able to tell her.  
  
When they arrived on the third floor, the nurse pointed towards the direction of Sabrina's room and gave her the room number before letting the elevator doors close between them. Anxious, and a little afraid, Kelly started to walk down the hallway until she was at the room, but then stopped as she placed her hand on the handle. She wasn't sure if she was ready to find out what was behind the door, but then realized that Sabrina would look no worse then any of the times that Kelly had been in the hospital, in matter of fact, she'd probably just look like she was sleeping. Realizing that her anxiety was slowly overcoming her fears, Kelly pushed down on the door handle and then walked inside before she even had a chance to question what she was doing. 


	2. Waiting

Inside, Kelly immediately noticed that Sabrina's room was meant to be shared by two people, but at the time, Sabrina was the only person in it. Upon first glance, Sabrina appeared to be simply sleeping, just as Kelly had expected, but then as she walked over to the bed, she could see the IV's running up her right arm, and the sensor on her finger that was monitoring her heart rate, yet she didn't seem to be in any discomfort or pain. Jack was sitting next to the bed, not paying any attention to who was entering through the door, as he held Sabrina's hand and ran his fingers over her knuckles. He looked exhausted, yet he was forcing to keep his eyes open, probably because he was waiting for Sabrina to wake up and to tell him to stop worrying about her. At first, Kelly was afraid that she would startle him if she spoke, but then realized that he was probably expecting her.  
  
"Jack?" Kelly whispered, causing Jack to look up from Sabrina. When he saw Kelly standing there, he almost seemed relieved, almost like her presence made everything alright. After giving her a hug, he then pulled a chair over for her and gestured for her to sit down.  
  
"You never called me. Is she going to be ok?" Kelly asked as she sat down in the chair. Despite the fact that Sabrina was lying in front of her, obviously alive, Kelly was still afraid that there was something that she couldn't see, something that no one was telling her.  
  
"I don't know. The tests confirm that she had a stroke, but then the doctor started saying something about a blocked artery in her neck, and significant weakness on her left side. The only thing I really understood was that there's a possibility that she could have another stroke.  
  
"What do you mean she can have another stroke? Can't they give her something to clear the artery?"  
  
"He is, but apparently they take time to work. He mentioned some kind of surgery, but he also said that the chances of her having a stroke on the table were greater."  
  
"So what are we supposed to do, just sit here and wait?"  
  
"I guess so."  
  
"Does he know what effects it had on her at least? So that we're prepared?"  
  
"He just mentioned the weakness on her left side, which he said can be fixed with extensive rehabilitation and physical therapy."  
  
"Well, could he at least say when she'd be out of the woods?"  
  
"He said that the next couple of days were crucial. If she can get through them without having another stroke, then she should be ok. He's giving her medicine though to keep her relaxed the entire time."  
  
"That's what I figured" Kelly replied as silence feel between them. Kelly knew from personal experience that the medications would keep Sabrina asleep until the doctor eased up on them, which probably wouldn't be until the immediate danger had passed. No matter how long it took, however, Kelly was determined to stay there until Sabrina woke up, and told Kelly herself that she was going to be ok. After all, Sabrina had done the same when Kelly was in the hospital.  
  
For two days, Jack and Kelly sat by Sabrina's bed side as they waited for the doctor to tell them that Sabrina was going to be ok. A majority of that time was spent in silence, but in a way, Kelly found it easier that way. It wasn't that she disliked Jack; Kelly had actually been thrilled the day that Sabrina announced she was marrying him; instead it was more that Kelly needed the time to herself to accept all that had happened. Occasionally she would call her husband, or Jack would call his and Sabrina's son Daniel, who was in the Army and couldn't get there, but most of the time they just focused their attention on Sabrina as they waited for the doctor to take her off of the medication, so that she could come back to life.  
  
It wasn't until their third day there, however, that the doctor finally said that Sabrina was out of danger, for the most part, and therefore he was easing up on the medications. Even then, though, it was still several hours before the drugs had worn off, and Sabrina had started to stir. When she did wake up, Jack was out of the room getting them some coffee, leaving Kelly alone to welcome Sabrina back to the world of the living.  
  
"Hey. How are you feeling?" Kelly asked as she noticed Sabrina's eyes open, and then flutter before searching the room to figure out where she was.  
  
"I've been better." Sabrina replied, although her voice was weaker then Kelly had ever heard it. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"You didn't think I would miss my best friend having a stroke, did you?" Kelly then replied, hoping that Sabrina would at least be amused by her comment.  
  
"Is that what happened?" Sabrina asked, apparently still trying to figure out how she had gotten there, and how long she had been there.  
  
"Yeah. Three days ago. The good news, though, is that the doctor expects that in time you'll make a full recovery." Kelly decided to add, hoping that it would give Sabrina the positive attitude that she would need to make it through all of the therapy and rehabilitation ahead of her.  
  
"Why can't I feel my left side?" Sabrina then added after some silence, her voice getting stronger and stronger as the conversation continued, although her eye lids were getting weaker and weaker.  
  
"It's a side effect from the stroke. Don't worry though, the doctor expects you to regain complete feeling. It's just going to take some time." Kelly replied before pausing, and realizing that Sabrina was probably wondering were Jack was. "Jack will be right back. He went to get us some coffee. Not all of us got to sleep for three days."  
  
"Ok." Sabrina said before becoming extremely quiet. The entire time, Kelly expected to be told to stop worrying, but the words never came out of Sabrina's mouth. Kelly wasn't sure if it was because she was still feeling the effects of the medicines, or because she felt that there was something wrong, but whatever it was, it was bothering Kelly. Sabrina never let people worry about her, but Kelly had come to accept that as Sabrina's way of letting people know that she was going to be ok.  
  
Jack returned a couple of minutes later, and was ecstatic when he saw that Sabrina was finally awake again. He could have talked to her for hours, but after a minute or so Sabrina had lost all of her energy, and he could tell that she was on the verge of falling asleep again. After promising that he wouldn't go anywhere, Sabrina went back to sleep as Kelly and Jack went back to their routine of just sitting there, and waiting. By now, however, they were both exhausted from hardly sleeping for three days, and just keeping their own eyes open had become a challenge. Jack refused to leave Sabrina's side though, and Kelly refused to leave Jack there alone, so together they sat next to the bed, as they tried to get some sleep in the extremely uncomfortable chairs. Jack would only sleep for an hour or two each night, and usually Kelly was the same way. That afternoon, however, after they had talked with Sabrina, Kelly found the feeling of exhaustion fitting her harder, as she fell into a deeper sleep in the chair. The next thing she knew, Jack was gently shaking her, as he tried to wake her up.  
  
"Kel." Jack said as Kelly was starting to wake up. "Why don't you go home and get some sleep."  
  
"Are you sure? I didn't want to leave you sitting here alone."  
  
"I'll be fine. Will you be ok driving home?"  
  
"I think so. I'm coming back in the morning though." Kelly stated as she stood up from the chair and tried to stretch the stiffness out of her back and shoulders. "Is there anything that you want me to get you?"  
  
"No, I'm ok. Thanks for being here though."  
  
"Don't mention it. I'll see you tomorrow morning. If Bri wakes up again, tell her I'll be back."  
  
"Ok." Jack said before Kelly put her coat on and then left the room. It took her a few minutes to figure out where she had parked, since she hadn't seen her car in three days, but then once she was in it, it seemed like only minutes before she was home. When she got there, Christopher was at work, but there was a note on the counter that simply told her that Kris had called. Kelly had never thought about calling the other "angels" to let them know what had happened, mostly because she was too busy worrying. Now thinking about it, however, she realized that she probably should have called at least Kris and Jill, since they were both close to Sabrina. The concept of having been in the same clothes for three days, however, was starting to bother Kelly, so she opted to jump into the shower and change her clothes before sitting down in her living room and dialing Kris's number.  
  
At first the phone seemed to never stop ringing, but then on the fifth or sixth ring, Kris answered, although it sounded like she was out of breath when she did.  
  
"Hey, it's Kel. Everything ok?" Kelly decided to ask. After everything else that had happened, Kelly wouldn't be surprised if Kris was having a heart attack, or if she was suffering from any other ailment that went with getting old.  
  
"Hey. Yeah. I just got back from the store and wanted to get to the phone before the machine picked up. So where have you been. Every time I've called this week, Christopher told me you were out."  
  
"I was in the hospital with Jack and Bri. Bri had a stroke a couple of nights ago so I stayed there with them until the doctor told us that she was out of the woods."  
  
"What! Is she ok?" Kris immediately asked.  
  
"The doctor seems to think that she should be. I can't really tell yet cause she just woke up today. I'm going to head back there in the morning though. I just came home to take a shower and to get a couple of hours of sleep."  
  
"You want me to fly out there? I have the time, so taking off of work shouldn't be an issue."  
  
"You don't have to. The meds that they have her on right now make her pretty tired, so most of the time Jack and I just sit there in silence."  
  
"Still, I'm her friend, I should be there. Which hospital is she at?"  
  
"The county hospital. She's on the third floor." Kelly replied.  
  
"Alright. I'm going to try to get on the next plane out there. Do you want me to just meet you at the hospital?"  
  
"Sure. Can you do me a favor and call Jill and tell her what happened?" Kelly asked.  
  
"No problem. I'll see you when I get there." Kris said before hanging up her phone. Not having to call Jill anymore, Kelly hung up her phone before walking into her bedroom where she laid down on her bed as she tried to take a quick nap before she started dinner. Just as her eyes were about to close, however, she heard the garage door open and knew that Christopher was home, and would want to know how Sabrina was. Accepting the fact that she wouldn't get to sleep until after dinner, Kelly stood back up and walked into the kitchen where she greeted Christopher while going through their refrigerator looking for something to make.  
  
"Hey. I wasn't expecting you to be back. How's Sabrina?"  
  
"Ok I guess. The doctor seems to think that it's safe to say that she shouldn't have another stroke any time soon, but she still seemed different when I talked to her earlier."  
  
"Maybe she was just groggy from the meds. After all, you said that they were keeping her unconscious for three days."  
  
"Yeah, I know. It was still strange though. Is chicken ok for dinner?"  
  
"Let me handle dinner. I doubt you got any sleep while you were there, so why don't you go and lay on the couch until dinner's ready."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive." Christopher said as he took off his tie before taking over the kitchen. Kelly then walked back into the living room where she sat down on the couch, unsure of what to do. "Did you see my note?" Christopher then added.  
  
"Yeah, I just called her back. She's going to fly out here."  
  
"Ok. I wasn't sure if you wanted me to tell her what happened, so I just told her that you were out."  
  
"O, ok. If anyone else calls though, just go ahead and tell them" Kelly replied. She appreciated what Christopher was doing, but she would rather not have to repeat the occurrences of the past several days too many times, not even to her close friends.  
  
Knowing that dinner was under control, Kelly decided to curl up on the couch before closing her eyes. Despite the "nap" that she had taken at the hospital, Kelly could still feel her body dragging, and therefore it wasn't hard to let her mind slowly drift off to sleep. 


	3. Calm Before the Storm

Kelly thought that Christopher would wake her up when dinner was ready, but when she woke up the room was dark with the exception of the flickering TV, and she noticed that a blanket had been placed over her body. Confused, she looked down at her watch and then pushed the hair off of her face with her fingers as she marveled at the fact that it was already 10 o'clock.  
  
"Good morning. I was going to wake you for dinner, but then I saw how peaceful you looked and decided to let you sleep." Christopher commented when he noticed that she was awake.  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"If you're hungry, I can warm something up for you?"  
  
"I'm ok. I actually think I'm just going to go to bed." Kelly said as she felt her eye lids grow heavy again.  
  
"Ok. Good night." Christopher said as she quickly kissed him before heading up the stairs. Once up there, Kelly put on the first pajamas that she could find before crawling underneath of the covers, and letting her body sink back into the pillows. Despite the sporadic naps that she kept taking, Kelly was still exhausted, yet she planned on waking up at 6:30 so that she could be back at the hospital by 8.  
  
The next morning, however, came quicker then Kelly had anticipated, as she was jolted awake by the alarm blaring in her ear. Despite the fact that her mind felt like it was working in slow motion, Kelly turned the alarm off before forcing herself to get out of bed and then to take a quick shower. As she let the water run down her body, she tried to force the steam to pry her eye lids open, and give her enough energy to be able to handle the drive back to the hospital. It wasn't until her second cup of coffee, however, that she was finally able to get her act together, and put together a small over night bag, just in case she wanted to stay at Jack and Sabrina's house instead of driving home. She then walked out the door with Christopher before kissing him good bye and getting back into her car.  
  
When she arrived at Sabrina's room, she walked through the door and was glad to see Sabrina sitting up in the bed, her left arm on top of a pillow as the doctor examined her vitals. Jack was sitting on the bed next to her, as he talked to the doctor, undoubtedly asking him every question that he could think of. Not wanting to intrude, Kelly decided to stand in the hallway until the doctor left, and since neither of them had noticed her come in, sneaking back out wasn't a problem.  
  
In the hallway, Kelly looked around as she was reminded why she had always hated hospitals. The entire atmosphere was cold and depressing, as the bright white walls seemed to jump out at her. Since there was no place to sit down, Kelly leaned against the wall as she watched the people past her, some of them being nurses, others beings doctors, but most of them being other patients getting their daily exercise.  
  
Not long after she had arrived, however, she spotted Kris walking down the hallway, obviously looking for Sabrina's room. After Kelly called out her name, Kris turned towards her and walked over, obviously glad to be seeing a familiar face.  
  
"Hey. I couldn't remember what room you said she was in, so I was hoping that I would be able to see into the rooms."  
  
"Don't worry about it. She's with the doctor right now so I figured I would stand out here and wait."  
  
"O." Kris replied before silence fell between them. Kelly was convinced that it was something about hospitals that made the words evaporate out of a person's mouth. Usually, after not seeing each other for a while, Kris and Kelly could talk for hours, except now they could only come up with a few phrases. "So how is she...really?"  
  
"Ok I guess. I haven't talked to her today yet, so I really don't know. The doctor said she should be fine though."  
  
"That's good." Kris said before they just stood there together, their backs against the wall as they waited for the doctor to leave. Although it seemed like forever, the door opened not long later as the doctor marked something off on Sabrina's chart before placing it back into the bin and walking away. As soon as he was out of the room, Kris and Kelly walked in and were immediately greeted by both Sabrina and Jack. As Kris hugged Sabrina hello, Kelly stood by the bed as she noticed that Sabrina was looking better that day then she had the three days before. Not only was her voice stronger, but she appeared to have more energy as well. It was almost enough to calm Kelly's nerves, to convince her that Sabrina really was ok, but she wanted to hear the words come from Sabrina's mouth.  
  
"Hey! You didn't have to come all of the way out here." Sabrina told Kris.  
  
"Isn't that's what friends are for? Besides, I wanted to see for myself that you were ok."  
  
"I'm getting there. I'm defiantly better today then I've been for the past couple of days. Kelly can testify to that."  
  
"What are you talking about? I wasn't worried as I sat in that uncomfortable hospital chair for three days in a row."  
  
"Speaking about that, do you mind if I go home and take a shower, since Kris and Kelly are here now?" Jack asked. He seemed more relaxed to Kelly then he had been, but she could only imagine how desperate he was to get out of those clothes.  
  
"Yeah, go ahead. I'll be fine." Sabrina reassured him before he kissed her cheek, said his good byes and left the room. As he was leaving, Kelly reclaimed the seat that she had sat in for those three days, while Kris claimed Jack's chair.  
  
"So how are you feeling, really?" Kelly asked.  
  
"Better. It's all kind of strange to me still, but I'm getting there...so Kris...where you working now?" Sabrina asked, trying to take the attention away from herself.  
  
"Same place. Honestly, though, I'm about ready to follow in both of your footprints and just retire." Kris commented. Sabrina and Kelly had retired within a year of each other, both for the reason that they were getting older, and less able to keep up with the newer, younger detectives. Occasionally, however, they would both help out with some police cases, since one of the guys that they had graduated from the Police Academy with was now one of the captains, but even that was more like a hobby then a job. A majority of the time Sabrina and Kelly were just looking for something to fill the time, although Kelly didn't foresee boredom being a problem in either of their lives for a while.  
  
"What would you do if you did retire?" Kelly decided to ask.  
  
"I don't know. I've just gotten really bored of everything. It's not exciting anymore, I feel like I'm catching the same criminal every case that comes my way."  
  
"Let someone else do the detective work then and act as the supervisor." Sabrina suggested.  
  
"I thought about that...I don't know though. You two have been retired for a couple of years now, what do you think?"  
  
"Well, keep in mind that we still do police work, just on a part time basis. So I guess you could say retirement didn't work out for us." Kelly said. She too had become bored of seemingly catching the same person over and over again, yet the boredom that went with retirement had proved to be ten times worse.  
  
"I'm glad that I retired when I did, but I couldn't just be retired. I need something there that I know I have to do...something that keeps me thinking." Sabrina added.  
  
"Even after the stroke?" Kris asked.  
  
"I think so. I really haven't decided if all of this is going to change anything or not. If I'm able though, I would like to continue helping out on police cases."  
  
For a brief moment, Kelly had forgotten the reason why the three of them were there, why Sabrina's left arm was propped up onto a pillow, and hadn't moved the entire time. When Kris mentioned the stroke, however, Kelly was quickly reminded, and when Sabrina questioned her own abilities, Kelly knew that Sabrina had realized that she had a lot of work ahead of her.  
  
Sabrina remained in the hospital for a week after that, although Kris had left after staying for three days, and Kelly had gone home around the same time. When all of the medical concerns had been dealt with, Sabrina's doctor wanted to transport her to the rehabilitation hospital across the street, however, Sabrina had grown tired of being stuck in the hospital, and was very animate about not going. In the end, the doctor had convinced her to spend a week there, if anything just so that she could get practice getting around. Despite the fact that her left side was practically dead to her, the therapists had her practicing with a walker, mostly so that her joints wouldn't stiffen up, and so that her muscles wouldn't get used to not being used. Kelly had kept in touch with both Jack and Sabrina and had decided to go and visit her again the day after she had arrived at the rehabilitation hospital.  
  
Everything about the hospital, at least in Kelly's eyes, was brighter and more cheerful then the regular hospital had been. The walls were all painted with bright colors other then white and the chairs in the small waiting area were made of a mint green cloth, and looked to be brand new. Even Sabrina's room was less dismal, as the bed had a floral comforter on it, and the sheets were a light pink instead of the starchy white. When Kelly arrived, Sabrina had just gotten back from a therapy session, and was struggling to get back into bed with a nurse's help. Kelly had waited in the back of the room until Sabrina was settled and then she approached the bed.  
  
"Hey. You seemed to be doing pretty well just then."  
  
"Hardly. I don't know how they expect me to use that walker. I can barely move my arm, nevertheless grip something." Sabrina replied, obviously cranky and frustrated.  
  
"I thought Jack said you were doing better with your arm?"  
  
"You want to see what better is?" Sabrina asked before concentrating as she slowly made a loose fist with her left hand. "That's what they consider better around here."  
  
"Hey, it's a start." Kelly tried to encourage her. Jack had warned her that Sabrina might be a little snippy and cranky, but Kelly had never imagined that she would be this bad, especially since the last time that she had seen her, she was practically acting like herself.  
  
"It's a long ways off from getting around without a walker though. What are you doing here anyway?" Sabrina asked, almost as if she were surprised that Kelly would be visiting her.  
  
"What do you mean? Last time I checked I was visiting my friend." Kelly snapped back at Sabrina, before she was able to stop herself. She knew that being in the hospital for a while could work at someone's personality, but she had never dreamed that Sabrina could be that snippy, especially to her.  
  
"Well you're wasting your time. I'm not getting any better, and I'm not getting any worse so there's nothing to see."  
  
"That wasn't the reason why I came. I came to provide you with some company, to give you someone to talk to. I know how lonely being in the hospital can seem."  
  
"I'd rather be alone." Sabrina commented, leaving Kelly with nothing to say in response. The Sabrina talking to her then was not the Sabrina that Kelly knew, and she wondered how long it would be before that Sabrina came back. Despite the awkward silence that had fell between them, however, Kelly stayed in the room with Sabrina for several hours, mostly until Sabrina had fallen asleep. At that point, Kelly got up and walked out of the room, with full intentions of going back home. As she was walking back out to the parking lot, however, she ran into Jack who was carrying a large bouquet of flowers to add to Sabrina's ever growing collection. After the two of them hugged hello, Jack asked her where she was going, and Kelly decided to inform him of the mood that his wife was in. As Kelly described Sabrina's snippy remarks however, and overall bad attitude, Jack listened as if nothing that Kelly was saying surprised him. The truth was, Sabrina had been acting like that for about a week, and the doctor could only explain it by saying that splintering herself away from those who cared about her was her way of dealing with her near death experience. Therefore, whether or not the old Sabrina came back would be up to her.  
  
For the entire car ride home, all Kelly could think about was how Sabrina had acted, and how that could be how she acted for the rest of her life. The cynical Sabrina that was sitting in that hospital bed, doubting her own abilities to get better, wasn't even a reflection of Kelly's best friend, and Kelly couldn't help but to wonder how long their friendship would last if she didn't change. 


	4. Personality Shift

When Kelly got home, Christopher was sitting on the couch, reading a book, as their dinner was in the oven cooking. Kelly didn't even kiss him hello as she sat down next to him, too disturbed in her own thoughts to realize what she was doing.  
  
"Hey. David called today. He has a case that he needs your help on. I told him about Bri, and he said if you could still help out, even just a little, he would appreciate it." Christopher told her.  
  
"O, alright. I'll call him back later." Kelly replied, only hearing half of what he had said.  
  
"Is everything ok? How's Bri?"  
  
"Ok, I guess.  
  
"That wasn't very convincing. What's going Kel.?"  
  
"I don't know. Bri's just been acting really different lately, and it's been bothering me, that's all. Like today, I don't think I've ever seen her be as snippy as she was to me, and I've known her a long time."  
  
"Yeah, but she also hasn't been on death's door before. Maybe between that, and now all of the physical challenges she's facing, she's just trying to figure things out."  
  
"Maybe. I've been there before though, I've been in that near death situation, multiple times, and I never acted like this."  
  
"You might just handle situations like that differently. I'm sure if you give her some time, she'll come around. She probably just needs time to think."  
  
"Hopefully. You said David called?"  
  
"Yeah. I can call him back for you if you want though, tell him that you're busy."  
  
"No, it's ok. It might be better if I occupy my time, get my mind off of everything. When should dinner be ready?"  
  
"Probably in like 10 minutes."  
  
"Ok. I'm going to go call him back then." Kelly said before picking up the cordless phone and walking out of the room. Her conversation with David didn't last long; mostly all they talked about was how Sabrina was doing and what time Kelly wanted to meet him at the station the following morning. For the most part, Kelly left out any of the current details regarding Sabrina's recovery, and instead just focused on how she was getting better, and anticipated going home at the end of the week. He then asked her what kind of flowers he could send, and Kelly advised him to send something different, seeing that Sabrina had already collected practically an entire garden of flowers since she was first admitted to the hospital.  
  
For the next month and a half, Kelly helped David with the case that he and his detectives had become stuck on, as she gradually let herself become absorbed in her work again, something that she had not done since her retirement. A majority of the time, it gave Kelly an opportunity to not think about Sabrina, although she hoped that the time had also allowed Sabrina to deal with whatever she had to, and go back to being her old self. Just as she was finishing up the case, however, she received a call from Jack, proving to her that nothing had changed.  
  
"Kel., can you do me a huge favor and let Bri stay with you for a week?" Jack asked, apparently desperate. Kelly knew from previous conversations that Sabrina had been home for only two weeks, so she was curious why Jack wanted to send her away.  
  
"Why? What's going on?" Kelly asked.  
  
"Honestly, I can't handle her anymore. She refuses to go to physical therapy, she never wants to talk, and when she does, all she can be is negative. I'm afraid I'm going to say something stupid if I have to put up with this much longer."  
  
"And having her stay with me is going to help?"  
  
"You're her best friend. Maybe you can get her to open up?" For as long as Kelly had known Sabrina, however, it had always been Sabrina's job to get Kelly to open up. That was why Kelly was so unsure as to how well this plan of his would work.  
  
"I don't mind her staying here, but what are you going to tell her? She's not going to want to come all of the way up here for no reason, not the way she's been acting lately."  
  
"She knows she can't stay alone, so I was going to tell her that I had a business trip that I had to go on for a week. Please Kelly. You're my only option."  
  
"All right. When do you want me to come down and get her?"  
  
"How about the day after tomorrow? That way I can tell her and give her time to react."  
  
"Ok. See you then." Kelly replied before hanging up. In the past, Sabrina and Kelly had always gone out of there way to spend a week together. Many of the times, they would simply plan a vacation together, allowing them to escape their everyday lives, but also catch up on what was going on. This time, however, Kelly wasn't excited about the prospect of spending a week with her best friend. If Jack, a man who undoubtingly loved Sabrina more then anything else in the world, was afraid of saying something he might regret, Kelly could only imagine what would happen.  
  
Despite her reservations, however, Kelly told Christopher about the arrangements, and then two days later made the drive down to Sabrina's house again, although this time, she made a point of going under the speed limit. She hadn't seen Sabrina since that day in the rehabilitation hospital, and she wasn't sure if Sabrina was aware that Kelly had spent the past month and a half working. Although such information normally wouldn't matter, she wasn't sure if Sabrina would use the information as proof that there was no need to get better, therefore increasing the awkwardness between them.  
  
When Kelly arrived at Sabrina and Jack's house, Sabrina's suitcase was by the door, as Sabrina waited for her on the living room couch. Apparently Jack had already left, knowing that Kelly would be there any minute, making Sabrina even more annoyed about the situation. Although she accepted that she couldn't stay by herself, she didn't understand why Jack had to go away onto this trip, and why no one had asked her where she wanted to go. As Kelly listened to Sabrina complain about it all, Kelly helped her stand up, and then watched as she noticed that Sabrina had gotten much better with the walker then the last time she had seen her. Now her left leg actually moved with the other, as both feet were planted on the ground, although it was obvious that the vast majority of her weight was still being placed on the other leg. Even her arm seemed stronger, as she could now grip the walker firmly with both hands, and move her hand onto the metal without any assistance from the other. Despite these improvements, however, Sabrina was just as bitter and as snippy as she had been before, leaving Kelly to fully understand why Jack had to get away from her.  
  
The drive back to Kelly's house was spent in silence, as Kelly tried to figure out what to say to her friend. She wanted to express that she knew what Sabrina was going through, that she too had struggled with the fear associated with almost dying, but she wasn't sure if Sabrina would believe that it was the same. 


	5. Life's Never Perfect

When they arrived at Kelly's house, Kelly took Sabrina's bag out of the car as Sabrina made her way inside, and over to the couch. Needing to get away from the awkwardness of the situation, Kelly opted to bring Sabrina's bag into the guest bedroom while Sabrina made herself comfortable. After placing her bag on the bed, however, Kelly just stood in the room as she looked up at the ceiling and took a deep breath. She had known that this week was going to be difficult, be she hadn't anticipated it starting the way that it had, with complete silence. As she looked around the room, however, her eye fell onto a framed picture that sat on the nightstand. It was a picture of Kelly, Kris, Jill and Sabrina from their younger days, during a trip that they had taken to the Caribbean together. They had all been sitting around a table, their half eaten meals in front of them, when the camera had captured that moment of uncontrollable laughter and joy. As she looked at the picture, Kelly started to remember who Sabrina had been before the stroke, and why they had remained friends for all of those years. These old memories made Kelly realize that she couldn't stand there and avoid the situation, but rather she had to walk back into that room, and try to help Sabrina overcome whatever she had to, just as Sabrina had once done for her.  
  
Full of new confidence, Kelly walked back into the living room where she found Sabrina reading through a file that Kelly had left on the coffee table by accident. When she had finished working on the one case for David, he had handed her a cold case that he was anxious to solve, and which dated back to 1975. He had gathered a lot of facts on the case, and he had countless statements from suspects and witnesses, but he needed help stringing it all together, and had asked her to take a look. Not having much else to do, Kelly had told him that she would, and had taken the file home with her, although she thought she had placed it in her bedroom before she had left that morning.  
  
"What's this?" Sabrina asked.  
  
"Just some case David asked me to look at. He was having trouble stringing some of the facts together." Kelly said, unsure how Sabrina would react.  
  
"I remember this case. I worked on it for a while, just before I started to work for Charlie. Have you looked at it yet?"  
  
"Only briefly." Kelly responded. She wasn't sure where Sabrina was going with the conversation, but she was glad to hear at least some kind of joy in her voice.  
  
"Would you mind if I read through it instead? A lot of the facts I still remember."  
  
"Yeah, no, no problem." Kelly replied, a little shock. Just as soon as Sabrina had started reading, however, she just as abruptly put the file back down before standing up and walking towards the guest room, leaving Kelly unsure of what to do. "You wanna talk Bri?" Kelly asked.  
  
"No. I just think I'm going to go lie down for a while." Sabrina responded. Kelly wanted to go after her, but decided to grant her her privacy, and instead stayed in the living room as she waited for some sign that Sabrina was ready to talk. After three hours past, however, Kelly grew concerned and decided to nonchalantly check on her, very much like Sabrina had done any time Kelly had spent entirely too much time alone.  
  
When she walked into the room, Sabrina was sitting on the bed, the same picture that Kelly had been looking at before in her hands, as she stared at it. Unsure of whether or not she should say something, Kelly remained quiet as she sat next to Sabrina, and once again remembered the exact moment that the picture had been taken.  
  
"You don't have to pretend anymore Kel. I know I've been unbearable lately." Sabrina said after a minute or so of silence, as she placed the picture back down onto the nightstand.  
  
"It's a normal reaction. You almost died... you had a serious illness...you have to re-learn to walk and to do things on your own. That's a lot for one person to handle in a short period of time. Of course you're going to be a little moody." Kelly tried to rationalize for her. She could tell that Sabrina was feeling badly about how she had been acting, and she didn't want her to feel even worse.  
  
"It's not normal for me. I was in life and death situations all of the time, and I was smart. How could I have let my body fail on me like that...how could I have let myself act like that?"  
  
"Bri, you didn't do anything. The doctor said the stroke was probably caused by something genetic, that was why your artery clogged despite the fact that you were doing everything you were supposed to to prevent it."  
  
"I know. I just...I just can't do it anymore Kel. I tried being optimistic, and I fell flat on my face."  
  
"You just got scared. Talking with Kris made you realize that you had a long road ahead of you and it scared you. That's normal."  
  
"No. Talking to Kris opened my eyes to what was ahead of me, but I didn't shut everyone out until after I went to the rehabilitation hospital."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Kelly asked, unaware that anything of significance had happened between the day with Kris in the hospital and the day that Kelly had visited her in the rehabilitation hospital.  
  
"The night before they transferred me, I needed something out of my bag, and no one was there. I could have swore that it was just a step or two away though, so I forced myself to get out of the bed, and tried to walk over to it. I thought, if I hold onto the bed, then maybe I could force my leg to work, but I was wrong. Not only was my bag further away then I had anticipated, but I also collapsed not even a second after I stood up. To make it worse, a nurse had to come in to help me get back into bed. After that, I gave up all hope of ever being able to walk again, or do anything by myself." Sabrina explained, although hesitating several times in the process.  
  
"Jack never told me about that."  
  
"Cause no one told him. I was embarrassed, I just wanted to forget it happened, and be left alone to rot in bed. Until today, that was the attitude that I kept."  
  
"And now?"  
  
"Looking at that file showed me who I used to be, who I could still be. In there was my unfinished work, and I figure, if I could tie it all together, if I could end the case, then maybe that would be enough to prove to myself that my mind's not dead."  
  
"Your mind was never dead."  
  
"That's a matter of opinion. You've never been here before Kel. You were shot in the head twice, yet both times you managed to escape this feeling of helplessness."  
  
"Don't you think that both times I feared it? I had bullets tear through my skull, if that's not anything like what you're going through, then I'm convinced that it was worst."  
  
"Maybe...I just ...I want someone to tell me to that it will all be ok."  
  
"Maybe you should just tell yourself. Throughout my entire life, you are undoubtingly the most stubborn person that I have ever met. If you tell yourself you can do it, then everyone else will believe that you can."  
  
"Maybe you're right." Sabrina responded, a hint of a smile on her face. "Jack didn't really go away for business this week did he?"  
  
"You don't really..."  
  
"It's ok. I know he didn't."  
  
"Understand that he didn't want to lie to you, he just didn't know what else to do. He didn't want to hurt you."  
  
"Trust me, I don't blame him for wanting to get away from me." Sabrina stated before returning her attention to the picture on the night stand. "Did you ever wish that we could just go back to when we were in our twenty's and didn't have a care in the world? You know, just be Charlie's Angels forever, and not worry about getting old or having strokes."  
  
"Sometimes. But then I remember what was wrong then. I had to worry about getting shot again and whether or not I had enough money and we all had to worry about whether or not someone wanted us dead. I guess we just have to accept that life's never perfect."  
  
"Yeah, I guess your right." Sabrina responded, before getting quiet again.  
  
Their lives basically went back to normal after that week, although neither Kelly nor Sabrina forgot what they had learned. It would take a while before either one of them accepted that they were getting older, but they were more prepared for the upcoming challenges in their lives. As long as they remained young at heart, they both knew that they could do and conquer anything, and in many ways, that was what kept them going. After all, life's not perfect for anyone, so why should they be the exception to the rule? 


End file.
